Invisible Beauty
Guests Expected
Directors Bethann Hardison and Frédéric Tcheng, Composer Marc Anthony Thompson
Description
Bethann Hardison is the fashion icon and cultural force you didn’t realize you already revered. As one of the first Black supermodels and an outspoken activist, Hardison took the world by storm in the 1970s, sharing the catwalk with Iman, and mentoring Naomi Campbell, Tyra Banks, and Tyson Beckford. Never content with the status quo, Hardison pushed for dialogue on representation and discussed raced and diversity years before those issues were part of the cultural conversation. She continues to advocate for change today. Hardison teams up with veteran fashion documentarian Frédéric Tcheng (Halston, Festival 2019) to tell her astonishing life story with lively commentary and salacious behind-the-scenes observations of the fashion elite. This insightful portrait of a remarkable woman also includes commentary from Whoopi Goldberg, Tracee Ellis Ross, and Zendaya.
Advocate, model, and muse—with a career spanning over five decades, Bethann Hardison has gone from working in New York City’s Garment District to founding her namesake agency where she guided the careers of some of the most prominent models in the world. In 1988, she founded the Black Girls Coalition, and in 2013, she spearheaded the launch of the Diversity Coalition sparking an industry-wide movement for diversity and inclusion. In recognition of her decades of advocacy work, Bethann received the CFDA’s Founder’s Award in 2014. In 2018, with the support of the CFDA, she founded The Designer’s Hub to guide and empower Black designers, and in 2019 became an inaugural member of Gucci’s Changemakers Council. Bethann currently serves on the CFDA’s Board of Directors and as Gucci’s Executive Advisor for Global Equity and Cultural Engagement.
Frédéric Tcheng is a French-born filmmaker based in Brooklyn, New York. He co-produced and co-edited Valentino: The Last Emperor, which premiered at the Venice Film Festival and was shortlisted for Best Documentary Feature at the Academy Awards. He is the co-director of the acclaimed documentary Diana Vreeland: The Eye Has To Travel, which the New York Times called “dizzily enjoyable.” His award-winning directorial debut Dior and I premiered at the 2014 Tribeca Film Festival and was released by The Orchard. His most recent film Halston was executive produced by CNN Films and premiered at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival. He has served as a filmmaking mentor for Queer Art, a non-profit arts organization in New York that serves a diverse community of LGBTQ+ artists across generations and disciplines. He studied engineering in France and is a graduate of the film program at Columbia University’s School of the Arts.
Film Details
Language English
Year 2022
Premiere California
Runtime 116
Country USA
Director Bethann Hardison, Frédéric Tcheng
Executive Producer Hallee Adelman, John Boccardo, David Chan, Derek Esplin, Ivy Herman, Robina Riccitiello, Rick Rosenthal, Nancy Stephens, Chris Stolte, Heidi Stolte, Andrea Van Buren
Producer Lisa Cortés, Paul Dallas
Editor Chris McNabb
Cinematographer Mia Cioffi Henry
Music Marc Anthony Thompson
Print Source Paul Dallasjamespauldallas@gmail.com
Closed Captions Yes, closed captions are available for this screening. Please let us know if you would like a device when purchasing your ticket or by emailing ADA@SFFilm.org.
Audio Description Audio Descriptions are not currently confirmed and will be updated soon.
American Sign Language (ASL) Interpretation American Sign Language Interpretation is not currently confirmed and will be updated. For any questions about accessibility at SFFILM Events, please email ADA@SFFilm.org.
